Sean Burroughs, Long Beach Little League star and former MLB player, dies at 43

Friday, May 10, 2024
LONG BEACH, Calif. (KABC) -- Sean Burroughs, a Little League World Series star for Long Beach who later became a first-round pick in the MLB draft and played several seasons in the majors, has died at the age of 43.

The Long Beach Little League said in a statement on Instagram that Burroughs, a coach in the league, died Thursday afternoon. His mother, Debbie, told the Southern California News Group that the cause of death was cardiac arrest.
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According to Long Beach Little League president Doug Wittman, Burroughs died after dropping off his son for a game.

"To say this is a huge loss is an understatement," Long Beach Little League said in its statement."... We will have his family in our thoughts and prayers during this time and try to end the season playing the kind of baseball Coach Sean would be proud of."

Burroughs, the son of big leaguer Jeff Burroughs, starred in the Little League World Series playing for Long Beach and won titles in 1992 and 1993.

The Long Beach Little League praised Burroughs as a "legend in LBLL" and noted that he returned "to his home fields at Stearns Champion Park to coach his son."



The third baseman made his major league debut in April 2002, recorded the first walk-off hit for the Padres in Petco Park history in 2004 and was out of baseball in 2007 before returning to play from 2011 to 2012.
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During his major league career, he played for the San Diego Padres, Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Arizona Diamondbacks and the Minnesota Twins.

Burroughs also won an Olympic gold medal in 2000 when he played for the U.S. in Sydney.

ESPN contributed to this report.

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